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EU/US Collaborations to Ensure a Capable eHealth
Workforce
Session 292, February 14, 2019
Marisa L. Wilson DNSc MHSc RN-BC CPHIMS FAMIA FAAN
Paula M. Procter RN MSc FIMIANI FBCS CITP SFHEA
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Marisa L. Wilson, DNSc MHSc RN-BC CPHIMS FAMIA FAAN
Paula M. Procter, RN, PGCE, MSc, SFHEA, FBCS, CITP, FIMIAN
Has no real or apparent conflicts of interest to report.
Conflict of Interest
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• Describe the current EU/US healthIT/eHealth competency gap.
• Highlight the potential impacts on systems because of the gap.
• Explore two case studies for addressing the gap.
• Gather audience input on their awareness of a HealthIT/eHealth
gap among current workforce.
• Solicit audience experiences with addressing that gap focusing on
process and lessons learned.
• Generate audience suggestions for support, tools, and resources
that can be used by facilities to address the gap.
Agenda
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• Describe the current evidence available describing the health
IT/eHealth competency gap among healthcare professional
students, faculty, and employees which is an international and
inter professional issue as healthcare become more digitally
connected
• Appraise the efficacy and applicability of the presented case
studies to address the gaps in health IT/eHealth competency.
These case studies include concrete outcomes, educational
offerings, and knowledge development for healthcare
professionals
• React and respond to guided questions presented by the
speakers which will be used to gain additional information from
audience experience with programs to address the Health
IT/eHealth competency gap in healthcare professionals
• Construct a roadmap for addressing the health IT/eHealth
competency gap in the workplace in the EU and US
Learning Objectives
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• We would like to know about you.
– Are you from the US?
– Are you from the EU?
– Asia, Middle East, Africa, Latin America?
– Do you work for a healthcare facility? University? Clinic?
Images: Alex Covarrubias (tweaked by Corticopious); adapted from Image:Continents vide couleurs.pn
Nick Youngson - link to - http://www.nyphotographic.com/
Room Assessment
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• Information and communication technology development and
implementations are making significant and lasting changes to the
way we live, work, play, communicate, and interact.
• We need a well-prepared eHealth workforce.
• A competent workforce can optimize costly implementations, use
the data and information, obtain the desired outcomes, and
function in interprofessional teams.
• A competent workforce has the cognitive, motivational, moral and
social skills that are needed to achieve goals through knowledge
and actions. (Hubner, Egbert, Hackl, Lysser, Schulte, Thye &
Ammenwerth, 2017).
Background
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• Nurses entering the workforce are not prepared and lack
informatics competencies needed (Found, 2012).
• Competency deficits were found in a pretest of informaticists in a
facility in the SE US (Pordeli, 2018).
• Brunner et al (2017) in a 3 phase study identified the need for
education and curriculum reform to reinforce eHealth capability
and reduce the gap between academia and application.
• The EU/US eHealth Work Project carried out a measure and
mapping project.
– In 2017, a Gap Analysis was conducted targeting 1000
respondents
– 877 participants responded from the US and EU
– Found pressing need for training particularly among nurses
and physicians
Evidence of Gap
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• Managers and workers do not have digital skills.
• Informal caregivers lack training.
• Educators competence must be improved.
• Courses and training are limited.
• Training materials and tools are not available.
• Job descriptions have not been adapted to include digital skills.
• Healthcare professionals are lacking in digital skills related to
continuity of care.
• Users are not involved in phases of systems development life
cycle.
EU/US eHealth Work Project. Blake, Blake, Shaw, Thye, Varri et al
(2017).
Significant Gap Findings
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Addressing the
Workforce Gap
Case Studies Review
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Paula Procter
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Developing the next generation...
‘An educated workforce
learns how to exploit new
technology, an ignorant one
becomes its victim.’
Stonier, T. (1981)
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Developing the next generation...
By 2020:
Every Nurse an eNurse
By 2020:
Every Nurse an eNurse
Adapted from the JISC Digital Capability Framework (2015) JISC/Helen Beetham
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Developing the next generation...
Digitization within society has
brought about Distribution
across time and communities,
which in turn has caused
Disruption to the ‘normal’
systems and structures and this
has resulted in Diversity of
actions…
Digitization within society has
brought about Distribution
across time and communities,
which in turn has caused
Disruption to the ‘normal’
systems and structures and this
has resulted in Diversity of
actions…
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Partnering for Practical Informatics
Health system hurtles nonstop
down the HIT Highway
Skilled Drivers Needed:
Informatics-fluent Healthcare Workforce
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• Unique academic-industry structure
• Organizational value proposition
• Internal & external needs analysis
• Shared vision & operational engagement
• Concept to pilot to reality!
Applied Health Informatics
Certificate Program
Partnering for Practical Informatics
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Student Outcomes
• Broadened perspective of health
informatics (beyond the EHR!)
• Developed basic clinical-technical
translation skills
• Acquired & applied practical
skills & tools in daily work
• Inspired life-long informatics-related
learning
• Reinforced the patient/healthcare
consumer focus!
Partnering for Practical Informatics
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Your Experiences…
Audience Input
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• Technical proficiency
• Information, data and media literacies
• Communication, collaboration and participation
• Creation, innovation and scholarship
• Teaching, learning and self-development
In your experience, what is the most
significant impact of the front-line
healthcare workforce members’ gap in
healthIT/eHealth competencies?
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How have you measured baseline
healthIT/eHealth competency of front-line
clinicians?
Students of healthcare professions?
Faculty in healthcare professional
programs?
Healthcare consumers/patients?
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What methods of closing the
healthIT/eHealth competency gaps have
you found most effective for front-line
clinicians?
Students of healthcare professions?
Faculty in healthcare professional
programs?
Healthcare consumers/patients?
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What do you need?
https://padlet.com/p_procter/bjgvnvvjwawm
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• Health Information Technology Competencies
– http://hitcomp.org
• Nursing Knowledge Big Data Science Initiative Education
Workgroup
– https://www.nursing.umn.edu/centers/center-nursing-
informatics/news-events/2019-nursing-knowledge-big-
data-science-conference
• Office of the National Coordinator. Health IT Curriculum
Resources
– https://www.healthit.gov/topic/health-it-resources/health-
it-curriculum-resources-educators
• TIGER Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)
– https://www.himss.org/professional-development/tiger-
initiative/virtual-learning-environment
Resources
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• Brunner, M. et al. (2018). An ehealth capabilities framework for graduates
and health professionals: mixed-methods study. Journal of Internet
Research, 20(5).
• Found, J. (2012). Developing competency in baccalaureate nursing
education: preparing Canadian nurses to enter today’s practice
environment. Canadian Journal of Nursing Informatics, 9(2).
• Hubner, U., Egbert, N., Hackl, W., Lysser, M. Schulte, G., Thye, J. &
Ammenwerth, E. (2017). Kernkompetenzen in Pflegeinformatik benötigen
Angehörige von Pflegeberufen in den D-A-CH-Ländern? Eine Empfehlung
der GMDS, der ÖGPI und der IGPI. GMS Med Inform Biom Epidemiol
2017; 13(1).
• Pordeli, L. (2018). Informatics competency-based assessment:
evaluations and determination of nursing informatics competency gaps
among practicing nurse informaticians. Online Journal of Nursing
Informatics (OJNI), 22(3).
• Thye, J., Shaw, T., Ball., M. et al. (2018). What are inter-professional
ehealth competencies? Studies in Heath Technology and Informatics. 253.
References
